Sunday, November 22, 2015

In his new Cross Currents post Yitzhak Alderstein inadvertently declares his opposition to physician assistants, nurse practitioners, accountants, and bookkeepers.

Because just as he would never "entrust a nidah question to someome who could not independently study a Chavos Daas, or a Sidrei Taharah" Alderstein should be unwilling to let anyone aside from an M.D diagnose and treat his strep throat. Also, he should be unwilling to allow anyone other than a highly trained tax attorney from a big firm to sign off on his annual return.

However, if he agrees that insisting on a superbly-qualified expert for every single case is overkill in medical and financial situations, perhaps it's time for him to wrap his head around the idea that it might also be overkill in certain halachick situations.

Do I need smikha to confirm that pig is treif? Of course not. In the same way, a yoetzet halacha does not need smikha and years of training to properly handle the abundance of rote, mundane nidda questions she will encounter. And just as the PA brings the unusual issues he encounters to a supervising MD, the Yoetzek can bring unusual issues to a Rabbi.

For Veterans Day lets remember Maurice Rose, and the other 550,000 Jews who served in the armed forces of the United States during WWII

Major General Rose was the son of a Rabbi and the highest ranking Jew in the U.S army. He died leading his men at Paderman. Let's also remember the three WWII era Jewish soldiers who were awarded the military's highest distinction, the Congressional Medals of Honor - Ben Salomon, Isadore S. Jachman, and Raymond Zussman

Nowadays, we tend to forget about the rich Jewish life that existed in pre-war America, and we write out of existence Jewish American heroes like Rose who, also, were victims of the Nazis.

Like most 21st century rabbis, Rabbi Student does none of those things... yet he still gets to sit on the RCA and call himself a Rabbi and he is afforded these privileges simply by virtue of the fact that he completed a course of study and passed a test. So why can't a woman who also does none of those things likewise enjoy the privilege of joining the RCA and using a title provided she finished the same course of study and passed the same test?

Or to quote a Facebook friend: "Today we have watered down "semikhah" to being nothing more than a certificate of completion. Outside those who get it due to yichus or paying off the right people. Men are getting it after doing online coursework and don't become rebbeim, pulpit rabbis, Dayanim poskim or sometimes even decent Jews. If that's all it means anymore then how do you argue against giving THAT to a women?"

UPDATE:

A rumor is going around that Gil Student holds private smikha, which may mean something awesome, but likely does not - and because its "private" we'll never know.

Why can't a women get the same credential?

So long as she never exercises religious authority or serves as a dayan what's the problem?

If a man who has nothing better than "private smikha" - or worse, online smikha, or some other watered down facsimile of smikha - can join the RCA and carry himself as a Rabbi with all the rights and privileges thereof, why can't a woman pull the same stunt?

Monday, November 09, 2015

Man, I hate that the War on Christmas seems to start earlier every year. When I was a kid, the war never started until December. Anyway, three cheers for the dirty hippies who launched the preemptive counterattack shown below

Thursday, November 05, 2015

Special thank you to our friends at the New York Times for excluding Batei Din (that's the plural of Bes Din) from their long, incriminating discussion of religious tribunals. It feels sort of nice to know that the Christian version of the Bes Din is every bit as corrupt, unreliable and unfair as the real thing, and I was very glad that the Times didn't embarrass us by including any examples of actual Bes Din malfeasance in the article

Check out these pictures of a Hasidic elementary school reenacting the wedding of Rivka and Issac and pity the poor little boys who were assigned the role of women. Those of you with no local hasidim may not realize it, but this reenactment is an annual event and beloved tradition. God only knows why. It's survival is a mystery right up there with our ongoing insistence on telling little kids that "Rivka was three when she got married" when so many more palatable interpretations are available.

Wednesday, November 04, 2015

I'm probably reading this wrong, but it sounds like Gil Student is arguing in his Haaretz op-ed that smart OJ women shouldn't care that they can't be Rabbis because the synagogue is so last century. He writes:

"The synagogue is the most visible symbol of Judaism but also the weakest form of religious experience. To an outside observer, the goings on of a synagogue seem like the most exciting part of Jewish life but insiders recognize this as a misunderstanding. [SNIP] This focus on synagogue roles is tragically ironic in the Internet age. While our society is decentralizing, we dare not elevate the brick and mortar aspects of religion"

But if that's true, why does Gil bother to identify himself as Rabbi? If the title is worth so little, why does he use it? And by that logic, why do we need male Rabbis?

The answer, of course, is the title is valuable. It commands respect. It opens doors. Moreover, there are many teaching and communal positions that are either open to Rabbis only, or offer better pay to men who have received smicha.

Why should a capable woman be denied a valuable credential - and the career opportunities that come with it - simply on the basis of her gender? We wouldn't allow a Ph.D or M.D program to withhold their degree from women. What's different about a rabbinical degree? Even if you argue that women can't lead synagogue, it doesn't follow logically that they must therefore be prevented from earning a degree that will other doors for them

Tuesday, November 03, 2015

I keep hearing people say this about Open Orthodoxy, and while I admit the analogy has its appeal, I am not sure its accurate.

The comparison rests on the understanding that the original Hasidim came not to destroy or undermine traditional, rabbinic Judaism but to revitalize it. The original Hasidim saw themselves as marginalized outsiders, with their religious needs left unfulfilled by the establishment insiders. When someone says that the OO are like the Hasidim, they are likely thinking of how the first Hasidim made Judaism accessible and meaningful for unschooled peasants. In their eyes, OO is attempting something similar when it reshapes Orthodoxy so that it can offer more to 21st century women.

The crucial difference, however, is that the original Hasidim were unquestionably operating from within a rabbinic context, and their most radical ideas could be sourced - however speciously - to an unquestionable authority (the Ari) and an unquestionably authoritative book (the Zohar). Meanwhile OO, in its most threatening expressions, looks like nothing more than a Jewish flavor of feminism. While rabbis of the 18th century may have been slow/unwilling to attack the Ari, the rabbis of our day have no such compunctions about attacking Gloria Steinem.

I don't know how to pinpoint the difference between a reformer and a revitalizer. Every reformer - from Jan Huss to Abraham Geiger - thinks he's fixing something old, rather than creating something new. And the opponents of reform, always say "what we have is just fine, by fixing it you're actually breaking it." We don't know yet how OO will be viewed in the light of history. If they are remembered as reviterlizers they are indeed the new Hasidim; however, I think its far more likely they will be remembered as reformers. Time will tell.

Monday, November 02, 2015

"On CNN's "State of the Union" Sunday Boehner said he invoked God to persuade his fellow Catholic from refusing to run for speaker to agreeing to do so.Boehner says he told Ryan: "'This isn't about what you want to do. It's about what God wants you to do. And God has told me, he wants you to" run for speaker"

In a saner world, people who claim God speaks to them would be receiving mental care. not finishing up a term in Congress.

ALTERNATIVE AND MORE LIKELY POSSIBILITY: Boehner knows God didn't speak to him. This is just propaganda designed to impress the rubes, including (unfortunately) some of my fellow Jews are no doubt pleased to learn of Bone-heads "spirituality".

Jews should not be playing the same sort of dishonest games that Palestinians play. An example comes from a post spotted this morning, on MY RIGHT WORD. (see it here)

---- TEXT OF THE POST ----

Stories of a Fake 'Palestinian' Narrative

Rachel's Tomb, Bethlehem, a century ago:-

[Photo of the Tomb in Ruins]

Notice the heavily populated and constructed Arab town of Bethlehem.

---- TEXT OF THE POST ----

Clearly the writer is attempting to imply that the Arab town of Bethlehem didn't exist and he is attempting to do this via an out of context photo. In reality, the Arab town of Bethlehem was just down the road, and you can see from this video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RwUjB_lGmtw (shot about 12 years after the photo was taken) that the town was both "populated and constructed"

We object when Arabs tell these types of lies. We should object when Jews do it, too.

If it relates to Jews, Judaism, holidays, Midrash,Torah, halacha or anything similar, I probably have a post on it. And if I have a post on it, I probably have a good comment thread with great reader-provided information, too.

Try a search and see for yourself. If you can't find what you're looking for ask me.

Quotes

רֹאשׁ דְּבָרְךָ אֱמֶת קוֹרֵא מֵרֹאשׁ דּוֹר וָדוֹר עַם דּוֹרֶשְׁךָ דְּרֹשׁ
Your chief word is "truth"; You've called it out since the beginning. In each generation people interpret You [for themselves] and find [their own] meaning.

You shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you odd. -Flannery O'Connor

“When in the afterglow of religious insight I can see a way that is good for all humans as it is for me—I will know it is His way.” - R. Abraham Joshua Heschel

I don't accept at all the quite popular argument that the press is responsible for the monarchy's recent troubles. The monarchy's responsible for the monarchy's recent troubles. To blame the press is the old thing of blaming the messenger for the message. -Anthony Holden

Said behind my back

"...he's trying to show that there are other facets to Orthodox Judaism. That we don't all think one way and vote one way. And he's occasionally entertaining when he's not being mean-spirited" [PsychoToddler]"

"He's witty. He's funny. He appreciates the ridiculous in life, and has no qualms about telling you when he thinks that you're being a moron" [Cara]

" I'm pretty sure [DovBear] is a really great guy who just wants to be able to ask questions and talk about things without the fear of someone claiming he's off the derech or on his way there." [Chaviva]